


Through Other Eyes

by PrincessofHarte



Series: Cronus Campaign Compendium [2]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Original Work
Genre: Aasimar, Androids, Family Dynamics, Found Family, Gen, Humans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-25
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2019-12-07 05:15:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18230405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessofHarte/pseuds/PrincessofHarte
Summary: A series of one-shots and alternate perspectives of things that happen within the Cronus Campaign. Will be updated severely infrequently and can be considered complete with each installation. Will likely also be full of spoilers and backstory for the Cronus Campaign.





	1. Rune Proxima: The Point of Heaven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Rune Proxima reawakens. Set in Post Shatter 63 and 65.

_“Go!” Omen shouts, pulling out his sword and blocking the blows of a skeleton. He presses forwards, blowing them back. Allie rushes to Aster, hoisting her over her shoulder, Aster’s body limp. Allie glows silver as she activates her aasimar abilities, her Radiant Soul. The light forms a halo, circling her, her wings immutable from the glow. She takes off, wind kicking up dirt around her, racing to the entrance. I rush to Omen’s side, summoning a Shatter to make the skeletons fall back._

_“What’re you doing, Rune?” Omen demands, lifting his shield._

_“Helping you.”_

_Three knives fly past Omen’s face, burying themselves into a skull. Nuvo darts forwards, retrieving the knives and jumping back. The green flame cackles and glows brighter. Behind me, Nuvo shrieks. With a surge of energy, the skeletons loom larger, growing in number. Omen shoves me back, knocking me to the ground. His eyes are desperate when he looks at me. He nods his head towards the exit. “Go! Protect the girls!” He swivels his hips, slashing at the undead, his sword singing as it connects with bone._

_I scramble to my feet, stumbling as projectiles hit my backpack._ Probably arrows. _I run to Allie, watching green fire dash along the ground towards her. Nuvo jumps in the way of the fire and screams, frozen in pain._

_“Nuvo!” Using my Feather Fall, I throw him out of the flame to Allie. She catches him, struggling under the weight of two people. Her feet dip to the ground, dragging behind her as her wings propel her forward. Allie’s eyes widen, staring beyond me. “Omen!”_

_I pivot, tightening the grip on my viol. Omen, shining in blue and silver armor, falls to his back as a horde of skeletons encase him. He screams, his voice cut off by a thick gurgle. I hunch over, using my backpack as a shield against the arrows flying at me. The straps break and the fabric tears, everything spilling out. The music box opens, playing Mom’s lullaby. I dive for it, ducking beneath more arrows and grabbing the bells inside before they fly out. I flinch when the arrows pierce my back; I feel the tips block the cogs and gears, each grinding as they try to turn._

_Allie stalls, indecision on her face as to whether she should flee or grab me. I toss the bells to her, enchanting them with Bear’s Strength. Miraculously, she catches them in her fingertips. “Run, Allie! It’ll be okay!”_

_“Rune!” She clenches her fingers tightly, tears falling pearlescent down her cheeks. Her wings flap once, her feet rising._

_“Go!” I blink, my gears locking. Everything grows dark. Dust brushes against my face and Mom’s lullaby plays until it closes with a snap._

* * *

 

**_Allie, Allie, Allie, be careful where you run. With silver bells, we’re all in hell. Al’Xol blocks out the sun._ **

 

* * *

 

Mom’s lullaby stops playing. I inhale, the cogs grinding to life. I must’ve been really out of it. Working my shoulder gears, I rise to my knees and grip the thing— _the music box_ —in my hand. People around me gasp. “Rune,” one whispers. _Allie._

I open my eyes and stare at the silver blur while my optics come into focus. “Hey, Allie.”

She blinks and smiles. “Rune.” When I see her, truly see her, I stare. _She isn’t wearing her cloak_. I’ve seen her without her hood on and without her eye hidden, but never without her green cloak. Her silver hair brushes past her on an unseen wind, curling gently around her nose and clinging to the rough skin of her scars. She wears black armor. _When did she switch out of leather?_ I step towards her, but my gears lock up.

“Catch me.” Her eyes widen and she reaches for me, arms outstretched. She props me against her side, pulling my arm around her neck and putting her right arm around my waist. A green bundle clatters at my side. _Her cloak_.

“What the fuck?” someone exclaims. I do not recognize their voice. “Is he a fucking robot?”

“They,” Allie corrects, her voice low.

“Whatever. Your friend is back. Can we get going? We’ve got to get to the top.” another voice says.

“What?” Allie pivots in anger, allowing me to see five men of various sizes and races, some cloaked, others masked. “We’re not going to the top. First, I’m not leaving Omen and Rune here. They need to go home—”

“You’ve got your friend back,” the one with the green mask interrupts. “Great. Now we can go to the top. That’s our job—”

“And second,” Allie returns, “Our _job_ was to destroy the phylactery and Al’Xol, not go to the Point of Heaven. We need to go to Betan.”

“Can we fight after we get out of this cave?” asks the man with the black mask. Allie furrows her brows and gestures to the men to walk past her, she glaring at some who do. The small one, a gnome probably, pauses, looks at me, and then catches up with the group. At our feet, a wolf barks, sniffing me.

Allie squares her stance, takes off a white glove, and holds out her scarred hand to the sides of the cavern. She casts Sacred Flame, the fire glowing beautiful and purple and silver. Donning her glove, she flicks her fingers and sends Firebolts to the back of the cavern in the areas out of her reach. She explains, “They deserved a proper pyre.”

Allie and I hobble outside, the heat of the flames warming the metal in my chest. She leans against the mountain and holds out her hand to me, her hand and eye glowing golden and the halo she never seems to see appearing behind her hair. _She’s using Cure Wounds._

I grab her wrist. “It’s alright,” I lie. I feel the arrowheads embedded in my back. I straighten. “I can stand.” I look for the familiar blue and bronze armors of our friends, but I don’t see them. “Where’s Omen?”

Allie frowns and steps back, holding out her cloak bundle. It clatters with the movement. _Bones_. She can’t meet my gaze.

“What? But…where’s Aster and Nuvo?”

She keeps looking away. “They’re…they’re back home.”

_But why aren’t they here with you?_

The man with the black mask and the large half-orc run behind Allie down the mountain. The other three ignore them, wandering deeper into the cliffs. Allie sighs. “I’ve got to go with them,” she says. “I’m the only thing keeping these idiots alive.”

“I resent that!” Black Mask shouts from the level beneath.

“It’s true!” Allie retorts.

“What? You’re kicking me out of the group?” I laugh it off, trying not to wheeze. The tubes circulating the water through my body are being compressed.

“No!” She meets my gaze. An updraft grabs her hair, pushing it over her shoulder. Her white eye is still cloudy, the scars still raised and opaque and slightly blue. They look deeper than before, more haggard. _Longer_. “That’s not it at all. Rune, I love you. You need to go home.”

I blink again, searching my memory core. _Allie has never said “I love you” to_ any _of us._ “Are you sure?”

“I—Rune—you.” Allie sighs, struggling with words. “You’ve been gone for so long. Don’t I look older to you?”

I should’ve seen it. I should’ve noticed she stands more hunched over, more caved in. _She’s been carrying the weight of the future._ I should’ve noticed her shadows under her eyes and cheeks. _She hasn’t been sleeping_. I should’ve noticed her longer hair. _She trusted only me to cut it._ I should have noticed _she’s hiding from the world again_.

She sets Omen’s remains on the ground and swings off her bag, rifling through it. When she stands, she hands me a thick leather tome, pages upon pages added and sticking out. I’d seen this only a handful of times before when we were both researching in the Star Children library. _She nearly set Prix on fire when he stole it from her._ She flips through the pages, pulls on a ribbon to bookmark it, and hands it to me. “This’ll explain everything.”

“I’ll read it all.” I hold it to my chest and stagger to my feet away from the mountainside.

Allie swings her backpack on and hands me her cloak. “At the base of the mountain is a horse and wagon. Murder Muffin will make sure you get there safely.”

I nod and the wolf yips. _Murder Muffin. Who named her that?_

“Hey, can anyone read this?” The Black Mask calls out. Allie groans, looks to me, and runs. _She’s running away_. I banish the thought.

At the base of the mountain, like she said, is a covered wagon. A Clydesdale pulls on it, regarding me with boredom. I set Omen down in the wagon, climbing up next to him. _Omen Rae died. He died and Allie couldn’t bring him back. What were we fighting? Gods, does Vega know? Aster has to know. That’s why she’s not here with Allie. She blames Allie for not saving him. Stars, we’ve gotten into some deep shit._ Murder Muffin scrambles up onto the wagon, growling at a chicken for getting too close to me.

 

* * *

 

_Post Shatter 63.7.29_

_It’s been a week. I can’t sleep. I can’t read. I can’t focus. All of my dreams are of them. I failed them. Whatever that thing was let me go. That green fire…it was evil, dark. It let me go. It let me go. I’m fallen now, for sure. They’re dead. They’re dead they’re dead they’re dead they’re dead. That thing is gonna use me and then I’m dead. I couldn’t…_

_I can’t stop thinking about Zibel’s face. He only wanted me to tell him what happened, but I couldn’t say anything. I couldn’t say Aster went down first and none of my healing spells worked. I couldn’t say that I healed Nuvo from the fire but nothing would wake him. I couldn’t say that Rune threw me the bells and that’s why I have them. I couldn’t say that Omen…They fucking ate him. I want to vomit. I watched that happen. I watched the skeletons with red teeth come after us…_

_I’m a fucking coward. I’m a coward and I can never face Zibel again. I killed his kids. It would be a mercy for him to kill me._

_~~Allie~~ Aliarandaloser_

 

* * *

 

“Allie…” I whisper. _No. They’re not dead. They can’t be dead._

 

* * *

 

_Post-Shatter 63.7.30_

_I made it to Signa. I’ve been to the library, but there might be something on the green fire. That thing is after me. It’s going to take my soul. The red eyes and the green fire. It wants me. I know it._

_…_

_There’s some commotion in the city. Someone’s looking for an aasimar. I’ve disguised my hair and eyes, but Rigel can see through that. I have to get out. These books can’t help me. A librarian will recognize me, and they’ll turn me over to Rigel for what I did to Sayas, if they even remember. Who am I kidding? Of course they remember. He was one of their oldest elves. This was a stupid mistake. I’m such a stupid mistake. Maybe Rigel will end me._

_…no. That’s not his style. Alphra is closest. He’ll go there next. I’ve got to get away. I’ve got to get to Epsilon._

_Alyingidiot._

 

* * *

 

I skim through the pages. They’re all the same; for about a year, Allie ran away through the south of Multia, trying to stay away from Rigel. _He loves you, Allie. He loves you the most. You were his daughter._ After that year, in Post-Shatter 64, she came back to the heart of Multia. Flowers are pressed in the pages, stiff and dry. _Asters and baby’s breaths_.

 

* * *

 

_Post-Shatter 64.7.22_

_It’s been a year. Aster and Nuvo are surely buried by now. I wonder if they ever went to get Omen’s bones or Rune’s body. I should visit their graves. Pay my respects. It’s my fault they’re gone. Are they buried next to Mere? Did Zibel buy land for a graveyard? I don’t know. I hope he did. They deserve more than that._

_Aleiliera_

 

* * *

 

Something rumbles in the distance, but it’s too far away for me to worry about.

 

* * *

 

_Post-Shatter 64.7.23_

_I couldn’t do it. I got to the gates of Betan, but I couldn’t enter. I couldn’t see them. All I have are these stupid flowers and they’re supposed to be enough? Fuck that. I’m stupid for even trying. It’s my fault they’re gone. All I do is cause death. I should just leave._

_…_

_I saw Prix and Rigel on my way to the Quad Roads. They didn’t notice me. Prix still looks like an ass with his white hair. Why did he never learn the spell to undo it? Rigel looks older. A lot of his hair is gone, and his nose is crooked, like someone broke it. He doesn’t look as happy. It’s my fault. I should’ve gone to him, to let him take revenge for me taking his happiness. Every good deed I do will never add up to all the bad I’ve done. I should’ve gone to him, but I couldn’t move._

_I’m still a fucking coward._

_Aleiliera_

 

* * *

 

I close the book, hearing footsteps approach.

“Rune.”

“Allie.” I watch her stand with her halberd in hand. _When did she get a halberd?_

“You’ve got to go. It’s not safe for you here. You need to go home.”

“What? But, Allie, what about—”

She unties the horse’s reigns and pulls them over its head. “I’ll be fine. Murder Muffin will make sure you stay safe. Please.”

She bites her lip, begging me to take the reins. I frown, but follow. “I’ll keep your book safe.”

Allie nods and watches me leave. I pause when she shouts, “McNugget!” but she waves me on, chicken in her arms. I need to get back to Betan. I need someone to fix me before she loses herself. But… I can’t leave her. I tug on the horse’s reigns, but it won’t budge. It knickers at me, shaking its head and pulls the reigns free from my hands. I scramble for them, catching them before they fell along the side of the horse.

_Damn it. I should’ve said something. I should’ve insisted she come with me. They still love her, I know it. Just like I do. Fuck. What am I going to tell them? What are the Star Children going to do? Will they even care about her?_

I wobble in my seat as the horse falters, moving backwards as if scared. Murder Muffin growls at the man in the road. He wears an outfit similar to Black Mask, except his mask is silver. Silver Mask points his sword at me.

“Where is he?” he demands.

“Who?”

Murder Muffin lunges.


	2. Omniscient Perspective: Thunderstone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Aleiliera Saethwr fights at the Star Children Guild in Betan. Set in Post Shatter 60.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written with my Dungeon Master (who hasn't chosen a pseudonym on here).

Aleiliera sits in the library above Zibel’s office, searching through the books written in celestial, finding nothing important. _Other realms of existence exist, but why would Mom want to go to the Nine Hells? That makes no sense._ She crosses off a name on her list, searching through another book.

Beneath her, the ground pounds and footsteps reverberate, the telltale sound of people running into Zibel’s office. Aleiliera puts her thumb on the page and closes the book, watching the hatch. The floor gives slightly as the ladder shivers with the weight of someone else. Zibel enters the library.

“Ah. Good. Aleiliera, I hoped to find you here.” He climbs off the ladder and walks over to her. The shaking continues. “Would you like to join the others in a group sparring match?”

Aleiliera frowns. “I don’t know…”

Omen pops up from the hatch, the movement in the floor building as he bounces on the ladder. “C’mon, Allie! It’ll be fun! Please, please, please, please!”

She sighs through her nose, saying, “Okay. Let’s go.”

Lacing up her boots, she puts her book in her room and follows Omen and Zibel to the training area outside. Prix, Volt, Rune, and Nuvo are already out there, watching Aster shoot arrows at Rigel. He dodges out of the way of them, forcing Aster backwards. He charges forwards, closing the distance between them and tapping her on the shoulder. He laughs, loud and clear.

“Remember, Aster,” he says, “Use the environment around you and don’t be afraid to use the ground itself against your enemies.”

Aster looks up at Rigel, breathing heavily. “Got it. Throw sand in their face.” She nods and walks back to the fence, ducking underneath Omen’s outstretched fist and between the fence slats. She grins at Aleiliera, welcoming her outside.

“Your footing was off,” Rune says.

Aster steps back and swipes at Rune’s knees, knocking their feet out from under them. Rune chuckles.

“I think _your_ footing is off.”

Aster pulls Rune up to their feet, both watching the others as Rigel motions for another sparring partner. Omen gently nudges Aleiliera to the front. “C’mon, Allie!” he says. “Show him what you’ve got!”

Aleiliera shrugs his hand off her shoulder. “Omen, stop it.”

He ignores her, instead shouting, “Rigel, sir! Allie volunteers to go next!”

Rune’s face twists when Omen pushes Aleiliera forward. _She rarely ever spars with us._ They glance at her empty hands. _She left her book inside._

Rigel holds out a wooden sword, hilt first. She pulls her hood down lower on her head, hiding her eyes, yet enters the area anyways. Aleiliera takes the sword, holding it limp and low to her side.

“That’s the spirit, Aleiliera!” Rigel encourages.

Rigel stands open, allowing his opponent to strike first. She swings her sword behind her, halfheartedly moving towards him, failing to hit him. He immediately parries her sword and she stumbles back a step.

“I know you can do better than that,” Rigel says. “I saw what you did to Prix.”

“She didn’t do nothing!” Prix shouts, his voice squeaky. Yesterday, Prix didn’t have a black eye.

Aleiliera steadies herself and widens her stance. She glances at Rune. Her sword dips again.

_She’s holding back,_ Rune thinks.

Rigel runs at her, knocking the sword out of her hand and Aleiliera onto the ground.

_He sees it too._

“Stop holding back!” he demands, his wooden sword pointed at her neck. “I can take whatever you throw at me.”

On her knees, Aleiliera looks to Rune.

_“You’re like me,” they told her. “You’re different.”_

_“No, I’m not. I’m a half-elf. I’m not human like you.”_

_Rune tapped on their chest, interrupting Aleiliera. They opened their chest plate, showing her the bronze cogs within. “Different is okay here. They’re all good people. They like you. You’re allowed to be different too.”_

_Aleiliera stared at Rune, humming in thought._ She glows when she thinks, _they thought._ She can’t be a half-elf. _“Whatever you are,” they began, “you’re still welcome here.”_

Her eyes meet Rune’s, asking _are you sure?_

They nod. Aleiliera inclines her head in response. Looking up at Rigel, she asks, “You sure? ‘Cause I don’t do wooden swords.” She stands, pushing his sword away.

“Oh, _really_? And what do you do?” Rigel grins.

She holds out her left hand, summoning a golden sword wreathed in light and covered in sapphires and rubies. “This.” She runs forward and attacks.

Rigel raises a brow, recognizing the use of magic anywhere. Laughing, he blocks her sword. “Nice. Nice, Aleiliera.” He watches her white knuckles and her tense stance. _She’s still holding back._ “But I _know_ there’s more to you than that. Spiritual Weapon?” He twists his sword, jerking his arm up and breaking her defense before punching her in the gut. “It’s a simple spell. Devastating when used right, but easy to counter.”

Aleiliera jumps back, calming her breathing and repositioning herself. “I’m not done yet.”

“That’s what I like to hear!’

From the sidelines, Zibel notices Rigel’s neck flicker blue. “Um, Rigel,” he calls out, “Calm down. Take it easy—”

“Zibes, not now!” he shouts back. “Alright, Aleiliera, come at me!” The two run at each other, blades clashing. Aleiliera slides between Rigel’s legs and slashes at him from behind. He blocks the blows, but some of her attacks are just quick enough to leave dents and cuts in his armor, the radiant damage leaving its imprint. This is nothing to him. His grin grows as they continue to fight, each slash countering the other.

Omen and Aster cheer, excited to see Aleiliera actually fight, but also excited to see Rigel wield his actual sword. The most either had done was knock Prix to the ground or sharpen the sword. Aleiliera presses forward, trying to make Rigel budge, nevertheless he holds firm. He knocks her back with the flat of his blade.

_Don’t interrupt me, Zibel_ , he thinks. _That’s the worst thing you can do now. Aleiliera is trying to do something. You have to see it!_

“This is only her first match against you!” Zibel tries again.

Rigel turns to him to yell at him, but Aleiliera takes advantage of his momentary distraction. She burns Rigel, the shock of her Sacred Flame making him flinch. She chucks her sword at him. It flies past Rigel’s face, scraping his cheek as he barely ducks out of the way. He pauses, watching her, impressed and inquisitive.

Aleiliera holds the re-summoned sword in her left hand, pointed to the ground, her right hand on the center of her chest, holding her holy symbol. The wind swirls around her, blowing back her hood and picking up her silver hair as it appears to glow. To the side, Rigel hears various gasps, but the lack of Zibel’s catches his attention more than the sound of Omen falling backwards off the fence. Aleiliera drags her sword as she steps forward. She grits her teeth and her eyes glare emerald and silver, the light spilling out over her cheeks. Behind her, almost indistinguishable from the light they emit, are two glowing gossamer wings, the feathers thin as dust. They form a halo, culminating at the dusty circlet above her head. She kicks off, flying at Rigel.

Rigel lifts his sword, meeting hers at an odd angle, unable to intercept her attack in time. The world slows to a crawl for both of them, Aleiliera noticing the glyph on Rigel’s neck. It glows dark blue as his smirk grows menacing, his eyes turning the same color. The blue rises out of his irises and flickers, becoming a flame. Within a second, the distance between the two is closed with a fiery sphere. Aleiliera scarcely makes it out, sweating from the sheer heat. When the sphere dies down, Rigel stands wearing a grin full of teeth connected to both ears. His eyes are wide and empty.

“I knew there was more to you, Aleiliera, but you should have guessed there was more to me too,” he says. _You started this game of magic_. Rigel holds his sword in a battle stance, his sense of self pushed aside.

Zibel knows what’s happening, and Rue can only guess. Rue hopes Aleiliera can survive the onslaught until Rigel burns out, except Zibel knows better. This is the advantage Rigel holds over him. This is what Zibel fears. And now he’s using it on Allie. _It only ever ends one way. It cannot go there._ “Rigel! Stop this now! That is an order!”

Rigel is silent as he wipes his hand on his sword, covering it in purple flame. Zibel’s eyes widen, aghast, as Rigel dashes to Allie. She hardly comprehends his speed, too used to his heavy lumbering around the guild hall. She jumps out of the way, taking flight. Rigel growls, sounding like an animal. _No_ , Aleiliera thinks. _An animal is too calm._

_Rigel growls like a monster._

Aleiliera throws her sword down in a panic. It misses Rigel, flying wide and landing near Prix. Though she can’t see it, she’s sure he’s peed his pants. Using the backwards momentum, she flies into the sky, aiming for the sun as fast as she can muster. She turns, checking on Sayas— _no, he’s gone and can’t hurt you_ —Rigel, gasping when she finds him right on her heels. He grabs her ankle and slams her down into the earth. She coughs, inhaling the dirt and the dust they kicked up. Her wings propel her across the ground, her body skimming it, Rigel’s fist barely missing her.

_Can’t run from him_ , Aleiliera thinks.

_Couldn’t run from Sayas_ , her mind counters.

_He’s not Sayas._

_Isn’t he?_

Aleiliera scrambles to her feet, snapping off the ground and blasting white fire at Rigel. He takes the hit with his arms, bracing for it. When the flames break, his crazed grin turns to a snarl when he doesn’t see her in front of him. Aleiliera ducked around Rigel, jumping up and slamming her hand against his face, gathering light in her fingers and planting it on his forehead. He growls, rubbing his eyes to get rid of the orange flare, unsuccessful. She hovers above him, trying to keep from touching down. _He’ll hear her if she does_.

The wind of her wings betrays her; it brushes Rigel’s flames and lets him know where she is. His teeth shine in the light, more of them visible as he swings his sword in her direction. _He knows his target is there. She_ has _to be there._ The magic-flame covered sword slashes at Aleiliera’s ankle as she flies higher to avoid it. Before she can counterattack, he vanishes. She looks around for him, stiffening as the sun’s warmth disappears. Aleiliera glances up. Her color drains when she sees Rigel above her. He holds out a hand, more claw-shaped than human. A ball of web slams into her, sticking her to the ground. She is motionless, dazed. The Star Children are silent. Rigel descends, the ground beneath him cracking and a loud smash reverberating through the field. He makes his way to the trapped girl, his sword aloft, ready to kill.

Aleiliera’s vision blurs between her past and her present. _No. No, no, Sayas, no! Stop! Rigel, please, no!_

“That is enough, Rigel!” Zibel shouts, charging at Rigel. He stabs Rigel through his armor, burying his sword in Rigel’s stomach. Everyone gasps as some of Rigel’s blood lands on Aleiliera. Rigel roars in anger and Zibel holds strong. “Rigel, snap out of it! I do not want to hurt you! _Remember her!_ ”

That phrase makes the monster of a man stop. His eyes return to normal, though Allie’s orange light remains. The blue mark fades to black. Rigel glances at the sword in his gut, chuckling and resting a hand on it.

“Too far?” he asks.

“Very,” Zibel answers. He pulls the sword out of his old friend, allowing him to collapse to the ground while blood pools.

Aleiliera stares. _What the in the Nine Hells is happening? Who are these people?_ She holds out her hand, summoning her sword to her side. Her chest squeezes, her lungs full and solid. Drowning. Aleiliera coughs, eyes widening when she tastes copper. She panics. She wrenches her shoulder, her breathing shallowing, desperately trying to unstick. She drops her sword, flipping her left hand over and setting the web alight. It disintegrates.

She rolls, escaping the flame, but her vision whites out. Off her back, she hardly registers she’s on her stomach. She can’t feel her right arm; she knows it’s underneath her. Dimly, she hears screaming; her throat is raw. Multiple hands pull at her; she doesn’t register their touch. Blood trickles from her mouth.

_Another fire_ , she thinks, the flames turning yellow. _Another scream. Another death. Another…another…another…_

Aleiliera slumps forward.

 

* * *

 

She wakes up an indeterminate time later. She’s covered in bandages. The adhesive pulls at her skin when she blinks and her ribs when she breathes.

“Thank the gods you’re alright!”

Aleiliera glances at the boy by her bed, his ruby eyes and purple skin indicating Volt Pollux is at her side. His hands glow lavender, casting a spell.

“I’m so glad you’re awake,” he says. And he truly is. Aleiliera is the hope Volt was waiting for. When he saw her angelic form on the battlefield, he knew she had come to save him and stop all the bad luck he caused. _She’s beautiful and she’ll make everything okay. If I’m with her, everything will be okay._

“Where am I?” she asks.

“Medical ward.” Volt beams. “I wanted to patch you up a bit before bed.”

Orange and pink light of the setting sun bathes the brown walls and supply cabinets. It has been several hours since the battle, however because she cannot see the angle of the sun in the sky, Aleiliera does not know how long she’s been unconscious. She shifts under the blankets, cringing; it hurts to move and magic isn’t healing her. Volt leaves, waving at her, but she doesn’t notice. Instead, her eyes narrow at a familiar chuckle. Tilting her head, she sees Rigel sitting up in another bed, gauze covering the wound made by Zibel and smaller bandages on his face from her.

Rigel grins. “Morning, sleepyhead.”

Glaring, Aleiliera says nothing. _He tried murdering me this morning and now he wants to act like it never happened? Hells no._ She stares at the ceiling, keeping to herself, yet Rigel persists.

“Come on, Allie, talk to me. It sucks getting the silent treatment. I should know! Rue does that to me every time I come back from a fight.” He pauses, waiting for her. “Please? Just a simple ‘hey’? Anything?”

Aleiliera turns away from him, struggling to breathe as her ribs settle, shifting her blanket lower. Her breath is shallow and loud. She doesn’t care. The pain in her right arm is sharp, but she grits her teeth and forces herself to get used to it. Her arm is bound to her chest.

“All right. I get it,” he continues. “You’re mad at me, and you have every right to be, but you can’t stay mad forever. I can wait.”

Aleiliera shrugs the pillow from under her head to over her ear, ignoring him. Eventually, he quiets and she falls asleep.

_Aleiliera sits up in bed, coughing as smoke fills the room. Eight red flames eat the walls, scorching paths into the ground. The smoke blocks out the ceiling as the building collapses, the surroundings falling away. Aleiliera braces to be crushed, but nothing falls on her. Instead, the fire surrounds her, reaching for her. Eight dead faces cry out to her, eight dead voices sear her soul._

_“You killed me.”_

_“You destroyed everything.”_

_“I only wanted to protect you.”_

_“I will never find eternal slumber.”_

_“Entitled wretch.”_

_“Murderer.”_

_“You killed my sister.”_

_“You killed us.”_

_Aleiliera summons her wings, taking flight, but their hands grab at her legs, pulling her back down. She kicks them, her feet finding no purchase. Their nails embed themselves in her flesh, charring the skin and climbing higher. They drag her to her knees, pinning her to the ground. They claw and gouge and burn and shriek._

_“You did this. You did this. You did this,” say the tinder-trapped souls._

_A woman wreathed in blue runs past, ignoring the flames._

_“Mom!” Aleiliera shouts. She does not turn. “Mom, help!”_

_Pages fall out of her mother’s book as she enters an amber door. The entrance disappears and the flames encroach. Ground rattles with scraping metal and broken bells._

_“Help! Please! Mom, please!”_

_A rough hand jerks her shoulder._

“Aleiliera! Aleiliera, are you awake? Aleiliera?”

She pushes away from the hand, searching for an exit. The flames burnt out, but the smoke remains. Rigel looms over her. Panicking, Aleiliera tries to run to the door, instead falling on her side, her legs trapped in the bed’s blanket. She kicks at the fabric, making it wrap around her feet more. Rigel yanks it away and frees her. She scrambles off the bed and onto the floor, ignoring the pain. The cold surface shocks her; she is still scared.

“Aleiliera?” Rigel asks.

“I need—I need—I need—I need—”

“What do you need? I’m right here. Let me help you.”

Aleiliera lifts a shaking hand at the door. “Out—outside. Rock. I need—”

Rigel scoops up Aleiliera. She clings to him, her knuckles white as she wrinkles his shirt. She hides her face in his chest, her eyes wide and fearful. She shakes though he holds her solid. He takes her behind the guild hall, almost running. His feet pound through the house and reverberate up the stairs. He doesn’t care if he wakes the children; Aleiliera needs him now.

When the cold moonlight hits her skin, she lifts her eyes from his shoulder, staring at the swollen moon. He sets her on the thunderstone in the middle of the field. She doesn’t know it’s a memorial marker.

Rigel sits beside her and follows her gaze skyward. “You know, I used to do this kind of thing with Zibel all the time. But he didn’t have intense nightmares. So, mind telling ol’ Rigel what’s going on? Or am I just going to get more of the silent treatment?”

He chuckles as if it were a joke. Aleiliera focuses on calming down. It’s always the same day she never wants to remember, when everything she loved vanished in bells and fire. She can’t tell anyone as they never believe it happened. She hates sleeping. It never changes.

“I—I know how it feels…to be haunted by nightmares.”

Aleiliera looks to his side, either curious or to yell at him. She doesn’t quite know. She says nothing when he continues.

“Let’s just say Zibes and I have been fighting for a long time. Well…that’s an understatement; we’ve fought for as long as I knew him. He always beat me and he knew it. I wanted to win so badly. I…did something stupid. Something I regret.” Rigel rubs the black sigil on his neck, his face covered in anguish. _Regret_. The way he said it was familiar to her. From a dream or a memory, she couldn’t say. She knows Rigel is being genuine, if only for this moment.

“I saw a lot of potential in you, Allie, and I was right. But I got a bit carried away. For that, I’m sorry. I just…I just can’t stop when I’m fighting someone I know is holding back. But I was too hard on you. You’re a young lady; you shouldn’t have been put through the hell I put you through…Or the hell I went through.”

Aleiliera turns back to the moon, thinking for a beat before she leans against Rigel. He settles behind her while she stills her hyperventilation. The moon is bright tonight, orange and larger than normal. _A harvest moon_. Checking the angle of the moon to the horizon, she knows it’s well past midnight. Except for the wind rustling the trees, everything is quiet.

Rigel hasn’t sat like this for a while. Ever since Sky took off, Zibel has been more reclusive, more inclined to stay indoors. Rigel isn’t good with quiet. He’s used to noise. But Allie…she’s been here for more than a month. She’s quiet and doesn’t mind noise. Though he doesn’t entirely understand her yet, he can tell this silence is different from earlier when she was angry. He watches her and the moon, listening to her breathing calm.

After a while, she speaks.

“I was born here, in Betan.”

Rigel shifts, the moving making him wake up from his sitting doze.

“Mom was a member of the Leira Enclave. Dad worshiped Lliira.” She looks at Rigel. “We used to have a library. Did you know that?” She faces the moon. “You probably don’t remember. No one does.”

Watching the ground, she whispers, “What would you do if you remembered something that no one else does and you have proof it happened? What would you tell people? What would you do when your gods don’t care and you know they’ll forget you too?”

Rigel looks at her, baffled. He sighs the moment she ponders what gods would think. “I’m not a paladin. My magic isn’t from gods, Aleiliera.”

Her nose scrunches while she looks at him in confusion.

“I made a stupid mistake when I was young. It is going to affect me even after I die. I paid the price, not with my immortal soul, but with my memories of a certain person. When I went ‘berserk’ the first time against Zibel to show off how strong I was, she saw. She cried and she thought I was a monster. She took my eye that day, but I did something worse; I broke her heart.”

“Who was she?” Aleiliera asks.

Rigel shrugs, unsure. “The thing attached to me took away someone who was precious to me and now I’m stuck with it. Allie, your gods haven’t given up on you and I’m sure your mom and dad are happily watching over you. As for me, I’ve got nothing. Just the Star Children.” He stands, stretching his arms. “So, what do you want for dinner tomorrow? I’m starving!”

His hearty laugh returns, the deflection an obvious coping mechanism. Rigel turns to Aleiliera, a great big familiar smile on his face. “Keep pushing towards the future, Allie. You’re strong, so you can take this world on and be the person you want to be. I know. Zibel knows. Everyone knows! And don’t forget: you have a family that loves you.”

Patting Allie’s head, Rigel starts to walk away, his steps slow, expecting Allie to follow. She doesn’t react, her mind swirling around Rigel’s words. She didn’t expect people to want her. She didn’t think they’d let her stay. She didn’t know she could think this way, especially after a deadly fight. Rather, she stares at the moon. The glow catches the clouds, turning them apricot and casting shadows on the town. It outshines the stars, blotting them away until they look like slips in stitches of the sweater of night. Her hair curls under her chin.

“My dad isn’t dead,” she says. “He’s just missing.” Still on the rock, she twists towards Rigel. Effulgence colors her hair white. “And some days, I don’t wake up with any magic at all. Leira can’t hear me and I’m too unhappy for Lliira.” Straightening, she watches the sky, willing the Mistshadow to acknowledge her.

Rigel turns back to her. He sees what she cannot. He sees her innate magic radiate off her body, the light she makes growing in intensity to match her emotions. He sees wind swirl around her, beckoning her to take flight, promising to catch her. He sees the future find her and the weight of knowing what will come pressing down on her shoulders. He sees an aasimar, resplendent in her heritage. He sees her and she cannot see herself.

“Is that really what you think, Aleiliera? Maybe this is a test and you have to overcome something to obtain the power you seek. I can’t contact any gods, so I wouldn’t know. I didn’t know about your father and I’m sorry for that. I’m sorry for everything.” Rigel smiles. “I can promise you that no gods hate you. Wherever your dad is, I’m sure he’s proud of you. And with your mom. I’m sure she’s proud of you too. You’re an amazing person, Aleiliera. Don’t forget that.”

He walks back to the Star Children Base. “Come inside whenever you’d like. I’ll be waiting if you want to chat by combat. If you want to actually talk, Rue and Zibel are there for you. I suck when it comes to talking to people.”

Aleiliera nods, but stays put. She listens to him go inside before sinking her face in her hands and crying dry tears.


End file.
